Suiren
by Vibrant Filly
Summary: After 16 years, a girl returns home, hiding her past from her family. But her past is coming back to haunt her. What can she do? Mild swearing. (I'm gonna change the last chapter, cuz it starts out goodd, then starts to really suck)
1. The Girl's Name Is...

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma and the rest of the gang. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi and all the other respective owners. I own nothing. Well, I own Suiren, because she's my character, I made her up, along with some others (I can't name them, because that would ruin the story). I'm using all the names of the gang without permission.

Author's Notes: Warning, this is gonna be a long one! I started to think one day, what if… (I can't tell you, it will ruin the story) but then I wrote this story on the bus when I should have been doing my homework (eep!). Suiren is a girl that I made up, but I thank Crikit, because I got the name Suiren from one of her pieces, called 'Akane & I,' and I suggest you read it, 'cause it's really funny. Anyway, thanks for the name, Crikit, and I hope everyone likes the story. Here's 'Suiren.'

~

The girl pushed a stray strand of her long, black hair from her face as she stared at the road sign.

"Welcome To Nerima"

The girl's face lit up with a smile. 'I'll find them here, I just know it! I'll finally be able to see them again after all this time.' She adjusted her backpack on her shoulders and walked forward into Nerima.

~

Akane Tendo ran into Ranma's room. "Ranma! Wake op! We're going to be late for school!"

Ranma leapt to his feet in a flash. "WHAT???"

Akane leaned against the doorframe, a smug smile spread across her face. "Gotcha." She dodged the pillow that came flying at her. Ranma glared at her. "The tournament's today, remember?"

"Yeah, so?" Ranma rubbed sleep from his eyes.

"It starts at one, right?"

"Ranma was getting annoyed with this question and answer game. "Your point is…?"

Akane straightened from the doorframe, smoothing her gi. "Well, it's noon now."

Ranma sat down on his futon. "Yeah, right."

"No, seriously. Look at the clock. She thumbed in the direction of the alarm clock. Ranma's gaze traveled from Akane to the clock. Sure enough, it read twelve noon.

"Ohshitohshitohshitohshit!" Ranma ran around the room, gathering clothes and his bath stuff. Finally, he ran out the door, past Akane, and down the hall to the baths. Akane shook her head and made her way downstairs.

As she sat at the table, her father asked, "Ranma up yet?"

"Yes, he's up now. Kodachi really got him good with the sleeping potion last night." Akane accepted the bowl of rice Kasumi offered her.

Ten minutes later, Ranma came rushing downstairs, water glistening from his pigtail. After wolfing down his lunch, Ranma ran outside to begin his warm-up. A few minutes later, Akane followed him outside, to find him rushing through his katas.

"Ranma! Slow down! At this rate, you'll kill yourself before the tournament starts!"

Ranma stopped, and sat on the ground. Wiping sweat from his forehead and breathing heavily, Ranma closed his eyes and savored the heat of the early afternoon. When his breathing slowed, he opened one eye and looked at Akane. "Wanna spar with me?"

~

The girl looked at the flyer in her hand, then at the sign on the building. "Tendo Dojo," she murmured to herself, "This is the place."

The girl strained her ears, and heard the faint sounds of combat. The girl walked through the gate, and found her way to the dojo. Opening the door, the girl was bombarded by the sounds of combat and cheers from spectators. 

Two men were fighting it out in the middle of the dojo. One was considerably older than the other, as the younger man had to be no more than sixteen or seventeen. With a determined look on his face, the younger man bounded toward the wall, deflecting off it, and before the older man knew what hit him, kicked the older man, knocking him out. The younger man landed on the ground without a sound, flipped his pigtail over his shoulder, and called out to the crowd, "Are there anymore challengers out there?" 

The room was silent.

"I'll fight you." Ranma turned toward the door to see a girl removing her backpack from her shoulders. She had obviously just arrived. She walked confidently to the middle of the dojo as the older man was dragged off to the sidelines. She also flipped her long, black braid over her shoulder. She was wearing travelling clothes, and was slightly dusty 

"What is your name?"

"I will remain nameless until you defeat me," said the girl.

"Fine with me."

"Soun began to rattle off the rules. "Rule Number One: The first opponent to have both shoulder blades touch the ground or be knocked out, loses. Rule Number Two: Anything goes in this battle." The two bowed to each other, and took up ready positions.

The girl surveyed her opponent. 'He looks to be about three years younger than I am. But I shouldn't judge by age, considering the way he beat that older man. But he is exhausted from his other battles. This shouldn't be too hard.'

Ranma was also sizing up his opponent. 'She looks easy enough. I'm really wiped out after the other battles.'

"You may begin."

Immediately, the girl leapt into the air, straight at Ranma. Before he could block, she released three kicks at him. She landed on the ground, and, taking advantage of Ranma's stupor from the kicks, swept her foot beneath his, bringing him crashing to the ground. But his shoulder blades didn't touch the floor.

'She's better than I thought.' Ranma leapt onto his feet with a grunt. The girl sent a roundhouse kick at his head, but Ranma easily bounded in the air, avoiding the kick. He twisted artfully in the air, landing behind the girl. When she turned around, he tapped her forehead, sending her to the ground, flat on her back. She stayed there, admitting defeat.

Ranma walked over to her. He offered a hand to help her up. She sat up, staring at him in amazement. She took his offered hand, and he hauled her to her feet. While she dusted herself off, Ranma asked, "So what is your name?"

She straightened, looking him right in the eye. "Suiren Saotome."

Ranma froze. Genma stared at the girl. 'Suiren? She's still alive?'

~

Author's Notes: Cliffhanger! This is for all you authors out there who torture the reader by ending chapters with cliffhangers. (Sorry to everyone else.) This was a really good place to end the chapter. Wondering who Suiren is? You'll hafta wait till the next chapter! E-mail me! My e-mail is [horsecrazy217@hotmail.com][1] . I love reviews, even if they're flames (they make me write better ^_~), so please review! 

   [1]: mailto:horsecrazy217@hotmail.com



	2. Family Ties

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story, except for Suiren and some others, who appear in later chapters. Rumiko Takahashi and the respective publishers own all other characters. I'm using their names without permission, so don't sue me!

Author's notes: Here's chapter two. I'm sorry to all those readers who don't write cliffhangers, but where I ended the last chapter was a really good spot. I even asked my friends. Getting back at the cliffhanger writers just sorta surfaced afterwards. So sorry about that. Anyway, here's chapter 2! Enjoy!

~

"What is your name," Ranma asked.

The girl straightened and looked Ranma straight in the eye. "Suiren Saotome."

Ranma froze. Genma stared at the girl. 'Suiren? She's still alive?' 

"Sorry, could you run that by me again?"

The girl looked annoyed. "I said, my name is Suiren Saotome. What's yours?"

"I'm, uh, I'm R-Ranma Saotome." 

Now the girl looked stunned. 'Is he…? Did I find them?' 

Ranma looked at his father. "Uh, Pop? A little help here?"

Genma remained silent, but strode over to the girl. He looked into her deep, ice blue eyes. After studying the girls' eyes for a few moments more, he spoke quietly, almost like a whisper. "You really are Suiren!" He grabbed the girl up into a hug, and said, "Oh, how I have missed you! You've grown so much!"

The girl pulled back from the hug. She looked at Genma. "Father?" Genma nodded, and hugged her again. Suiren began to cry with joy. "I finally found you, after all this time! I thought I would never see you again!"

Ranma was stunned. And confused. "Uh, Pop? What's going on here?" 

Genma regained his posture. "Son, meet your sister, Suiren."

Soun came forward. "Maybe you three should talk elsewhere." He gestured to the watching crowd. The women wear crying tears of joy, and the men were bored, confused, or unconscious. Majority of the men fell into the latter category.

"Right. Are there anymore challengers?" The room was silent. "Okay then, tournament'soverranma'sthewinnereverybodygohome."

After everyone had left, Genma lead Suiren and Ranma to the house. He asked Kasumi to bring some tea into the garden and invited the Tendo family to join them by the koi pond.

When everyone was seated, Nodoka entered the garden. "Good afternoon, everyone." Then she noticed Suiren. Shock spread across her face.

"Dear, Suiren has finally returned to us." Tears ran down Nodoka's cheeks. Suiren stood and walked over to her mother.

"I missed you, Mom," she said, hugging her mother. Nodoka hugged her daughter back, tears cascading down her cheeks. 

After Nodoka had calmed down and was sitting with everyone else, Ranma spoke up. "Pop, Mom, how could Suiren be my sister?"

"Well, when Suiren was three and we were expecting you, Suiren was kidnapped." As she spoke, Nodoka looked between her two children.

"Your mother was devastated. The police and I did everything we could to locate Suiren, but nothing worked. After a few years, we gave up hope of ever seeing her again."

Ranma looked at his older sister. He took in her strong features, her tall build, ad her face. Her long black hair had been released from it'' braid, and the soft, silky strands flowed down her back to end at her waist. He looked into her ice blue eyes, the same color as his. She was almost a female version of himself. Almost. "What happened to you?"

Suiren averted her gaze to the ground. "Well, my captors took me to a small island off the coast of Hokkaido. I was kept there until I was able to escape a few years later. Then, I made my way to Hokkaido, where I wandered until I collapsed from malnutrition and exhaustion. A woman found me, and she cared for me, raising me, teaching me martial arts. I lived with her, until I turned sixteen. I became restless, I needed to see my family. I told the woman, and she tearfully accepted my decision. She helped me pack and sent me on my way. Since then, I have been travelling, studying martial arts and searching for my family. And now I'm here." She looked up, to see unshed tears in everyone's eyes, except Ranma and Sun. Soun was crying a river, and Ranma stared at his sister in disbelief. 

A tear slid down Nodoka's cheek. She wrapped her daughter up in a hug, stoking her hair and saying, "Oh, my poor girl, my poor, poor baby girl. I'm so sorry you had to live with all that."

"Oh, Mom, it's not your fault. And everything's okay now. I'm here, and we're together."

Just then, it started to rain.

Suiren and Nodoka broke their hug, and Suiren caught sight of the girl sitting in her brother's place, and the giant panda sitting in her father's place. "Uh, what's going on here?"

"Let's go inside before we all catch cold," Kasumi suggested. "We'll explain everything there."

"And I insist you stay the night."

"Oh, no, Mr. Tendo. That's all right, I wouldn't want to be a burden on anyone." Suiren started to heft her backpack onto her shoulders. Soun stopped her by taking her bag.

"No, I insist. At least for tonight. We would all like to get to know you better." Suiren looked at all the faces around her. Every pair of eyes were begging her to agree.

"Well, I guess so." She smiled. Akane walked over to Suiren. 

"That's great! And you can spend the night in my room, with me. I'm Akane, by the way."

"Thanks, Akane, I'd like that." Suiren smiled down at the shorter girl.

"BUKEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Suiren and Akane looked toward the gate, and saw a small black pig wearing a black and yellow bandanna bounding across the lawn to Akane.

Akane caught the pig in her arms, and cuddled him to her chest. "P-Chan! Where have you been?" Together, the two families walked into the Tendo household.

Once inside, Ranma-chan headed upstairs. P-chan jumped from Akane's arms and followed Ranma up the stairs. 

~

In the baths, Ranma ran hot water into the tub, and, without bothering to scrub, stepped into the hot water, feeling himself become male again. P-Chan dived into the tub too, and a boy wearing a black and yellow bandanna emerged in his place. 

"Hey, Ryoga. 'Sup?"

"Who's that girl with Akane? Wait, let me guess, she beat you in the tournament?"

"No, I beat her, actually."

"Another fiancée?"

"Man, that's gross!"

"What do you mean?"

"She's my sister!"

"Really?"

Ranma leaned back, clasping his hands behind his head. "Yup. She was kidnapped when she was three, and has been looking for us since she was sixteen."

Ryoga looked around thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, she does look kinda like you…"

"I gotta go." Ranma hopped out of the tub. "And I think Akane's wondering where P-Chan is." He started to walk towards the door. He stopped and turned around to face Ryoga, who was also getting out of the tub. "Hey, you better not be thinkin' of hittin' on my sister," he said in a threatening tone.

"Don't worry. My heart belongs to Akane and Akari." Ryoga dumped a bucket of cold water over his head, instant P-Chan. 'Even if Suiren is kinda cute.' P-Chan followed Ranma into the changing room, and pushed the bathroom door open with his piggy snot. Then, he sauntered off down the hallway, in the direction he thought was to the hallway stairs. Instead, he walked into a closet and got stuck.

~

Downstairs, the Tendos and the Saotomes sat in the living room. Ranma spoke first. "Alright, Suiren. I'll explain the shape-changing bit. A few years ago, Pop took me to a legendary training ground called Jusenkyo. Have you heard about it?"

"Yes, yes I think I have. It is rumored that whoever or whatever falls into one of the springs changes into whatever drowned there last."

"Well, that rumor is true. We were training there, and I knocked Pop into spring of drowned panda. In retaliation, he knocked me into spring of drowned girl."

[It's not my fault!] signed Genma. Ranma hit him over the head.

"Shuddup, old man! You know it's your fault! You couldn't follow the guide's warnings." Ranma calmed down. "Anyway, now whenever I'm splashed with cold water, I turn into a girl, and he turns into a panda. Hot water reverses the effects." The kitchen clock chimed four o'clock. Kasumi stood up.

"I should begin dinner. If you'll all excuse me." Kasumi walked into the kitchen.

"I don't think we have anything else to talk about just yet. Saotome, how about a game of shoji?"

[You're on, Tendo!] As the rest of the household went their separate ways, Suiren headed to the kitchen.

"Kasumi, do you need some help in here?"

"That would be nice. Say, Suiren, do you like pork?"

"Um, actually, I don't eat meat, at all. I have some kind of allergic reaction to it."

"Hmm, alright, do you like vegetable tempura?"

"I've never had it."

Just then, Ranma walked into the kitchen. "Kasumi makes the best vegetable tempura." Kasumi blushed at the comment.

"I'll be looking forward to it then." Suiren smiled. "What do you want me to do?"

~

That night, Suiren had rolled out her sleeping bag on the floor of Akane's room. P-Chan (Akane had rescued him from the closet) was travelling between the two girls looking for pets and cuddles.

The two girls talked about their families, and Akane told Suiren everything she could about the Saotomes. Suiren told what it was like to live with someone who wasn't related to you, and Akane described what it was like to lose your mother at a young age and having to be raised by your father. The two girls became fast friends.

"so, Ranma's your fiancé?"

"Yeah, but we hate each other."

"Oh, I'm sure he can't be THAT bad!"

"But he is! He's a perverted jerk! He's always insulting me, and he's a womanizer."

"Hmm. He insults you, does he? What does he call you?"

"Mainly uncute tomboy, but also fat, he says I'm built like a brick, or a stick, I can't kick, and on, and on, and on."

"I don't mean this in any unproper way, but I don't think you're uncute. Or fat. Or any of those things my brother says you are."

Akane looked down shyly. "Thank you Suiren. I don't hear that often." Akane smiled at Suiren, who smiled back. "You know how Ranma changes into a girl, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, there's this guy at school, Tatewaki Kuno. He can't get through his thick ego that Ranma is his 'pigtailed girl,' even though Ranma has changed in front of Kuno multiple times." The two girls giggled. A knock at the door silenced them.

"Lights out, girls," came Soun's voice through the door.

"All right. Good night, Dad."

"Good night Mr. Tendo."

"Good night girls." Akane snapped off the light and was almost instantly asleep. 

"Good night, Suiren," she mumbled.

"Good night Akane. Sweet dreams." 'If only I could have sweet dreams.' Hard as she tried, Suiren could not sleep, as disturbing thoughts plagued her mind. Finally, she fell into a deep, dream-less sleep.

~

Author's Notes: There's chapter 2. Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I had in writing it! Chapter 3 out soon, I promise. (It's already in rough.) You'll find out what's bothering Suiren, preventing her from sleeping, soon enough. I just have to figure it all out, first ^-^' I think I have the largest case of writer's block that I've had in a while. This is gonna be a really long story, by the looks of it. **Sigh** I'll never finish it! Till next time! Ja ne! 


	3. Suiren meets Kuno

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma, or the rest of the gang. They're all owned by Rumiko Takahashi. I only own Suiren and all the other characters I made up. Good luck trying to sue me, I just gave my last dollar to a friend to pay for a teacher's gift!

Author's Notes: Finally, chapter three. Not much to know about this chapter, except Kuno has been speed training. I haven't thought up Suiren's secret yet, or at least, not the whole thing, so it's not in this chapter, but part of it is in the next chapter. That's about it. Chapter four out A.S.A.P.

~

Suiren woke up around four thirty the next morning. She changed from her nightclothes to jeans and a T-shirt and rolled up her sleeping bag. Suiren then crept outside to the garden. She sat beneath a tree and let her mind wander.

Suiren was snapped out of her reverie by a yelp, followed by shouts and crashes. Soon, her father ran into the garden, followed by a female Ranma. The two battled it out for a few minutes, until Ranma knocked his father from the air and into the koi pond. 

"Take that, old man. Oh, mornin' Suiren!" A soggy panda climbed out of the koi pond and made his way into the house. 

Suiren smiled at her younger brother (who, at the moment, was her sister) as she stood up. "Good morning, Ranma."

"Wanna spar with me?"

"Sure, why not."

"Do you know any ki attacks?"

"Um, I know some…"

"Wanna use 'em?"

"Sure. Enough talk! Let's go!" Soun watched from the window as the two girls leapt at each other. 

Ranma released a blue chi ball, calling out "Moko Takabisha!" Suiren easily avoided it by twisting in the air. She landed briefly, then jumped back into the air, curling into a ball. She did an aerial summersault, and formed a white chi ball. She landed on the ground again, and released the ball, crying "Dragon Rage!"

Ranma wasn't expecting the chi ball to have such a strong force and he was knocked back into the koi pond. He came up sputtering, and saw Akane rushing to help his sister off the ground. Ranma lifted himself from the water, and began to remove his shirt. 

"What happened," asked Akane, a worried expression on her face.

"What kinda attack was that?" Ranma removed his shirt, squeezing it dry.

"That was Dragon Rage, a technique based heavily on rage. I've found that using this technique is the only way I can control the hate that has built up inside of me over the years. But, I'm not strong enough the withstand the backlash of the technique yet." Suiren looked at her brother, ho was topless and female. 'She' was squeezing 'her' red pigtail dry. 

"My pigtailed goddess! Oh, how I have longed for thee!" A young man wearing a kendo uniform and carrying a bokken came running across the lawn. He ran up to Ranma, and was about to hug her, when Ranma stuck his foot in his face.

Akane tapped Suiren's shoulder. "That's that guy, Kuno. I told you about him last night."

"Ah, yes."

Kuno looked toward Akane and Suiren. "Good morning to thee, fair Akane. Who is this?" Kuno stepped toward Suiren and grasped her hand. "What be thy name?"

Suiren slipped her hand from his grasp, disgust etched across her face. " My name is Suiren Saotome."

Kuno was shocked by her name. "Doest thou be related to the vile Ranma Saotome?"

Suiren crossed her arms over her chest. "I wouldn't call my brother 'vile' if I were you."

"Do you challenge the great Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High?" As Kuno spoke, thunder rumbled across the sky.

'Great? Yeah, right!' thought Ranma.

Suiren closed the gap between her and Kuno. She put her face to his and said, "I guess I do."

Kuno backed up, readying his bokken. 'She should be easy. I heard she lost to Ranma yesterday. This'll be a piece of cake.'

Suiren's battle aura began to glow faintly. Kuno charged, brandishing his bokken. Suiren leapt up, avoiding the blade. She kicked out at it, but Kuno grabbed her ankle, and she hit the ground with a cry.

'When did he learn to do that?' Ranma watched in shock.

Suiren was contemplating her options. 'Okay, no more attacks from the air. I don't think he knows any ki attacks, so I had best not use Dragon Rage. Otherwise, I can't get close enough. What to do, what to do… wait, there's one thing ZI can do. And I can use his speed to my advantage.' Suiren leapt up and ran toward Kuno. She released a fast roundhouse at Kuno's head. As planned, he dropped his bokken and grabbed the oncoming foot. 

Ranma was astonished. 'How could that doofus be so fast?'

Akane was worried. ' He could break her foot off!' 

Suiren pretended to be surprised. 'Stupid idiot! He just walked right into my trap!'

Kuno smirked. 'Stupid girl. She knew I would catch her.' Of course, Kuno was too dense to think that she had planned this, and he was in trouble. 'Now, to finish her off!' Kuno twisted Suiren's foot. Suiren hopped up and turned into the twist. She brought her other foot up and slammed it into the side of Kuno's face. He released her foot, and fell backwards. Suiren did a handspring and landed on her feet with barely a sound. Kuno hit the ground with a thud.

"Give up yet?"

Kuno stirred and groaned. "Never," Kuno gasped, and got to his feet with a grunt. He stood on shaky knees. Suiren calmly walked up to him, and kicked him hard in the chest. Kuno wheezed as all the air in his lungs was forced out. He fell backward and lay still.

"I win." Suiren flipped her hair over her shoulder, turning to Ranma and Akane. "Is he normally THAT easy to beat?" 

"Yup."

"Yeah."

"Huh. He could do with some more training."

"HAHAHAHAHA! So, my egotistical brother has been beaten again?" A whirlwind of black rose petals surrounded them, and Kodachi dropped down from her perch in the tree. As the rose petals settled, she said, "Where is my darling Ranma?"

"He's getting ready for school," said Suiren. "May I ask, who are you?"

Kodachi looked Suiren up and down before speaking. "I am Kodachi Kuno. I have come to see my Ranma darling. Where is he?"

"I said, he's getting ready for school. Akane, why don't you go see what's taking him so long." Akane nodded, and ran into the house, dragging female Ranma with her. Suiren watched Kodachi warily, not taking her eyes away from the strange girl.

A few minutes late, Ranma came bounding outside, wearing his uniform. "Hey, sis. What's up?" Then he noticed Kodachi. "Mornin' Kodachi. What do you want?" 

"Only to give you this." She flung a parcel at Ranma. "And to take my dipwad of a brother off your hands."

"Huh, okay."

Akane came running out of the house in her uniform. "Ranma! Let's go! We're going to be late! 

"Hey, Suiren, take these into the house for me, 'kay?" He threw the package to Suiren, which she caught in one hand. Ranma hopped onto the fence and began running after Akane. "Bye, Suiren!"

"Good bye, Ranma darling!" Kodachi waved Ranma off then went over to her brother. She pulled a bottle of smelling salts from out of thin air, popped of the top, and proceeded to wave the bottle under Kuno's nose. He awoke with a start. "Move it, dipwad! Ranma's already left for school!"

"Oh no!" Kuno jumped to his feet and grabbed his bokken. "That vile fiend knocked me out as to escape from our morning battle. That shall not happen!"

"Actually, I knocked you out."

"Ah, yes, Suiren, the girl with a fate worse than death, for she is Saotome's sister!" 

Suiren began to glow again. She kicked Kuno over the fence, in the direction of his school. "You should get to school, too," she said to Kodachi.

"Very well. We shall meet again, Suiren!" In a flurry of petals, Kodachi was gone. 

Suiren sighed and went into the house.

"Suiren, would you like some breakfast," called Kasumi from the kitchen.

"No, that's alright." Suiren walked into the kitchen.

"What do you mean?"

"I lost my appetite when I met Kuno this morning." She made a face. " What should I do with this?" She held up the package. "Kodachi brought it for Ranma."

[Chuck it] signed her father, the panda. He flipped his sign around to reveal the rest of the message. [She put paralysis or sleep stuff in whatever she can.]

"Oh, okay." Suiren tossed the package into the trash can, and walked upstairs to the baths. 

~

Suiren sat on the small stool in the bathroom. She was scrubbing conditioner into her hair. 'Sometimes long hair is a pain in the ass.' She dumped a bucket of water over her head. It took a few tries, but she finally got all the conditioner out of her hair. 'My hair is always a pain in the ass.'

She finished scrubbing and stepped into the furo. She let the warm water wash over her, relaxing her tense muscles. She could almost feel her worries wash away. Her mind began turning over the thoughts that were locked away from her family. She hugged her knees to her chest. 'How am I going to tell them. No, AM I going to tell them. True, they are my family, but I don't want them to get hurt. If he finds out I told them… I don't want to go there. But I have to tell someone. Oh, what am I going to do?' Suiren sighed and got out of the tub. She dried herself off with her towel, and squeezed water from her long hair. Flipping her hair over her shoulder, Suiren wrapped the towel around her, walked into the change room, and gathered her clothes from the hamper. Then, she walked out the door and down the hallway to Akane's room.

~

Author's Notes: That's the end of chapter three. And I still don't know all the little details of her secret. I don't know what I'm going to do! Oh, well, I guess I'll just wing it when I get there… Anyway, chapter four out as soon as I can. My schedule is kinda busy, what with final exams and all, but I'll try to get it out soon. Till next time! Ja ne! 


	4. The Secret

Disclaimer: I DON'T own anyone in this story, except for Suiren, because I made her up

Disclaimer: I DON'T own anyone in this story, except for Suiren, because I made her up. Everyone else belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Author's Notes: Okay, I forgot to put this in the author's notes at the end of the last chapter, but Dragon Rage is the name for a Pokemon move. I really needed a name for her move, and this kinda popped into my head. Anyway, in this chapter, you'll learn about Suiren's little secret that she's been keeping from her family. And another thing, Ranma really cares about his sister. Enjoy. :)

~

Suiren's day was occupied by helping Kasumi and her mother with the housework. When Ranma and Akane came home, they were arguing, as usual. Suiren watched them yell back and forth at each other. Finally, Ranma said something that earned him a good-sized whack on the head with Akane's mallet. Akane ran inside and up the stairs to her room. 

Ranma finally noticed his sister standing there. "Hey sis," he said weakly, nursing the growing lump on his head. A door could be heard slamming. "Stupid, uncute tomboy," he murmured, standing up, still rubbing his head. "Hey, Suiren. How about we go out for dinner, just the two of us. I want to get to know you better."

"Sure," Suiren said, smiling. Ranma beamed back. 

Just then, Kasumi came outside, carrying a paper-wrapped box. "Oh, hello Ranma."

"Afternoon, Kasumi. Oh, just ta letcha know, Suiren and I are going out for dinner tonight."

"I see. Getting to know each other better?"

"Yup." Kasumi fumbled with the package she was holding. Suiren caught the box before it hit the ground. She offered it to Kasumi, who pushed it away. "This came for you today."

Suiren took the package back. "Oh, okay. Thank you for bringing it out to me." Suiren inspected the paper-wrapped package. It was small, light weight, and was devoid of any address. Only her name was written across the top, in large black letters. 'Who could have sent this? Could it be from…no! He doesn't know that I'm here! Then who…?' Suiren noticed her brother was watching her strangely.

"Somethin' wrong?" Suiren blushed lightly, realizing she hadn't concealed her emotions. "You looked kinda scared for a minute there."

Suiren was flustered. "Uh, no. I just noticed that there were no addresses on it. Whoever sent this, hand delivered it. Take a look." She turned the box so that Ranma could see the top.

"Hmmm. You still gonna open it?" Ranma had a concerned look on his face. He looked at her carefully.

'If it's from him, then I have to.' "I-I guess so." Suiren sat on the ground and began to take the paper off carefully. Her hands were trembling visibly. Ranma sat next to her and studied her face. Suiren opened the box and peered inside. Her gasp made Ranma tear his gaze from her face and look at the box. Inside it, lay a leather-bound book, a necklace, and a ring. "Shit. It is from him. He knows I'm here. Damn."

"Who knows you're here?" Suiren had forgotten about Ranma. His words brought her back to reality.

"Uh, no one you need to know about." She returned her focus to the box. She delicately lifted out the book. "My journal," she murmured. "Why would he send me these?"

"'He' again. C'mon sis. 'Fess up. Who's this guy you keep talking about?" Suiren looked into Ranma's eyes. She could tell he couldn't stand stalling. He wanted answers, now. 

"Uh," Suiren returned her gaze to the ground. 'I can't tell him! I couldn't bear for them to be hurt." Suiren squeezed her eyes shut. 'I just can't tell him!'

"C'mon, Suiren." Ranma's voice softened. "If you're in danger, Pop and I will protect you." He leaned forward, placing his hand on hers. "You know that." Suiren looked into his eyes. This time, she could see that he cared. He really wanted to help her. Her eyes began to water. 

'I want his help, but he'll get hurt.' "But you can't help. There's nothing you can do against Keimara."

"Who?"

Suiren took a deep breath to calm herself. "Keimara. He's… he's too… he's too powerful and cunning. He's got dozens of cronies in Tokyo alone, and more all over Japan. They act as his personal newspaper. He knows about everything that goes on in every part of Japan. Any one could be commuting with him. I mean, one of his men could be listening to our conversation right now. Besides, what I have against him is personal. This is my fight. And I don't want my family to be hurt. Oh my. I shouldn't be telling you all this. Promise not to tell Mom or Dad?" Her eyes begged him to agree.

"I promise." Ranma could tell that his sister was uncomfortable telling him all this, and he shouldn't dig further on this Keimara person. Suiren would tell him in due time. "That's a nice necklace. How'd he get that stuff anyway?"

"I don't know. I thought I had this stuff with me." 

Ranma held up the necklace. The pendant was a silver water lily, and in the middle was the smallest diamond he had ever seen. "Where'd you get this?"

"Mom gave it to me just before I was kidnapped. She had it specially made for me. The pendant's a water lily, and that's what my name means, water lily." 

Ranma handed her the necklace and picked up the ring. He studied it for a moment. It was a silver ring, with a fancy S. It also had a small diamond, at the tip of the S. 'Hey, wait a minute. I think Mom told me about this once.' "What about this ring. I think Mom told me about it once." 

"Yes, It's an heirloom to the Saotome family. It's been passed down from mother to daughter for generations. Mom also gave this to me before I was kidnapped. It's strange, trusting a three-year-old with something as valuable as this."

"I think she was hiding it from Pop. Anything valuable he pawns off."

"That could be it." Ranma handed Suiren the ring, and she slipped it on her hand. She clasped the necklace around her neck. "There, that's better." The two smiled.

A sudden gust of wind blew Suiren's journal open to a page in the back. Suiren bent over and read what was scrawled on the page. She looked at the book in surprise, then in shock as she read the note. She looked at Ranma, who spun the book around so that he could read it too.

'Suiren,

Nice journal. You've lead an interesting life. I wonder why? HAHAHA! But enough fooling around. I noticed you…forgot some things. So I decided to bring them to you. For your information, I'm coming soon for a…let's call it a visit, shall we?'

Ranma seethed with rage. He looked into Suiren's pleading eyes. "I won't tell. I promise."

"Thank you Ranma. I don't want anyone hurt."

~

The pair were unaware of the pair of eyes watching them. 'This is interesting.' The man silently left the tree, and ran down the street. No one could see him, only feel his backdraft, and figure it's the wind. He ran to an old, abandoned warehouse. He tapped on the door. Entering silently, he dropped to his knees. "Sir? I have news about Suiren."

"Speak," came a rumbling voice from the darkness. The man rose and flipped his blond ponytail over his shoulder. He spoke in a soft but firm voice.

"Sir, I have located Suiren. She was at the address you stated. She got the package, and is now wearing the jewelry. She read the note, as well."

"Has she told anyone yet?"

"Only her brother, but she only told him details about you, Sir."

"Do you have any suggestions as to how we could get her to come to us?"

"No Sir."

"Do we have a chance of taking her again?"

"It would be very hard Sir, for she has learned a very powerful chi attack." 

"Is there anyone else we could take? Say, her brother, maybe? He's younger than she is, right?"

"You're right, Sir, he is younger than her, but he is an even stronger martial artist than she. I witnessed him in a fight. He beat Suiren in a battle that chi attacks were not utilized in."

"Not her father, either. It is obvious he trained the boy. What about her mother?"

"She seems easy enough, Sir. She only carries the family katakana around."

"Good. Continue to watch her, and report to me when she tells her brother, or the rest of her family for that matter, anything else about her past with us. I send someone to watch the Tendos. Be gone."

"Yes Sir." The man left the warehouse, running back to the dojo at top speed. The passerbys only wondered about the sudden gust of wind.

~ 

Author's Notes: I think this is going to be one of my favorite stories. I'm having a lot of fun writing this! I hope you people are enjoying this story too! Next chapter out soon. (I can't wait for school to be let out, then I can type all day.) More of the secret will be reveled in coming chapters. I've got a main idea, but I'm still kinda stuck on the tiny details. Till next time! Ja ne! 


	5. The Dreams

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING
    
    Disclaimer: I own NOTHING! You hear me? NOTHING! Well, I own Suiren, and Keimara, and Keimara's henchmen, but hey, you know. Everyone else was created by Rumiko Takahashi, therefore, she owns them.

Author's Notes: Chapter 5, finally. Here, you'll learn a little more about Suiren's secret and Keimara. This next part happens while the spy is reporting to the guy in the warehouse. 

~

"RANMA SAOTOME, PREPARE TO DIE!" Suiren slammed her book shut and looked up to where the voice had come from. She shielded her eyes from the sun, trying to spot the attacker. 

'Please God, please, not Keimara or one of his henchmen!' Instead, Ryoga dropped down, wielding his umbrella. Ranma had hardly enough time to dodge the offensive umbrella.

"Hey Ryoga! Where have you been? I thought the challenge was for last week."

Ryoga stopped when he noticed Suiren, sitting on the ground, clutching her book to her chest. She was pale and breathing hard from fright, but was slowly calming down. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, no, it's not that. I thought you were… someone else."

'Poor girl. She's still scared of Keimara attacking her after all these years. I don't know what she went through, but it had to be bad to affect her for this long.' Ranma was too busy concentrating on his sister, he almost didn't get a chance to avoid Ryoga's next attack. "Whoa! Watch it, Piggy!"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Ryoga leapt at Ranma, right into his fist. Ryoga slumped to the ground, barely conscious. He looked at Suiren. "So," he said weakly, "what are you to Ranma, another fiancée?"

Suiren giggled. She didn't look afraid anymore. "No, I'm his sister, Suiren." 

Ryoga nodded and stood up. "How I pity you Suiren." Ryoga shook his head solemnly.

"Whatcha talkin' about?" Ranma was visibly angry.

"She's your sister, of course. That's a fate worse than death." Before Ranma could move, Suiren kicked Ryoga into the air and far away.

"Huh. No one insults me or my family."

"Unless it's one of the family members doing the insulting, right?"

"Yup. Get over here, Brat!" Suiren leapt for Ranma, intending to tackle him. Ranma jumped onto the roof with ease. 

"Come and get me!" Ranma stuck his tongue out at his sister, then bounded off. Suiren shook her head and went inside. Kasumi stopped her in the hallway.

"Suiren, I don't mean to be nosey, but what was in the package? I'm just worried because there were no addresses on it."

'Think fast, Suiren!' "Um, just a few things a friend brought over for me. I guess I left them at their place when I last visited them. See." She showed Kasumi the jewelry and the book.

"All right. As long as it's from someone you know."

'Damn right I know Keimara, and I hate everything about him!' Suiren just smiled and hurried upstairs. She knocked on Akane's door. "Akane? Can I come in?"

A faint "Yeah sure" came through the door. Suiren pushed it open quietly. Akane was lying face down on her bed. 

Suiren sat on the edge of the bed. "Akane, is something wrong?"

Akane rolled over onto her back. She stared at the ceiling for a moment before answering. "No, I just had a bad day, that's all."

"It's not about what Ranma said earlier?"

Akane winced at the memory. True, she had been hurt by Ranma's words, but they were the same words he always said. "No. This has nothing to do with Ranma. Besides, everything he says now is just the same old thing." She noticed the book and the jewelry. "Is that what you got in the package?"

"Suiren fingered the pendant. It didn't feel right. The weight was different. Almost as if… something was on it, like a tracking device, or something. "Yeah, a… friend sent them to me." 'Ha, Keimara's the farthest thing in the world from a friend.'

'A… friend? Why the pause? Could someone else have sent it to her? Someone she doesn't like?'

Suiren smacked her palm to her forehead. "Oh, I promised my mom I would help her with something. We can talk later, if you like."

"Sure Suiren. I could use someone to talk to." Akane smiled meekly. Suiren returned the smile and got up from the bed. She put her book by her bag, and quietly left the room, leaving Akane alone with just her thoughts and the silence.

~

"One of my other fiancées works here, at the Cat Café." Ranma pushed open the door for Suiren. They were greeted, or rather, Ranma was glomped by a certain purple-haired Amazon waitress. She backed off when she noticed Suiren. 

"Ranma, who strange girl?" Shampoo glared at Suiren, while Suiren stood idly by. Shampoo looked ready to fight. Suiren was ready for anything the girl threw at her, despite her stance. Shampoo charged at Suiren. "I kill any other girl near Ranma!" Before Ranma could do anything, Suiren had caught Shampoo by the wrists. The Amazon girl was thrashing around, trying to hit Suiren. 

Suiren put her face next to the raging Amazon's. She spoke in an even tone, revealing no emotion at all. "Calm down. I'm only his sister."

Shampoo stepped back, still wary. "Ranma, is what strange girl say true?" 

Cologne hopped to the counter, watching her great-granddaughter, Ranma, and the new girl. The new girl looked a lot like Ranma. She had his eyes, his face, she was almost a female version of him. Cologne hopped over to the trio. She was just in time to catch the tail end of the conversation.

"Yes, Shampoo. This is my older sister, Suiren."

"She does look a lot like you, Ranma." Cologne sized up her future daughter-in-law. 'She looks like a strong fighter.' "Tell me, why haven't we seen you around before?"

"It's a long story, but I was kidnapped when I was three, before Ranma was born. I just found my family yesterday." 'And I might lose them again soon, if Keimara has anything to do with it.' Suiren forced a smile, despite her inward thoughts.

"Come, sit down." Shampoo led them to a table. While they ate ramen, they discussed everything under the sun. 

But the two were unaware of another pair of eyes watching them. Mousse was sulking in the corner, his heart falling father with each passing second. He had so hoped the new girl was another fiancée, as Ranma seemed to care for her a lot. If she had been another fiancée and Ranma had loved her, Shampoo would give up on Ranma and turn to Mousse. But the new girl, Suiren, just had to be his sister. He continued to sulk until Cologne called out for him to deliver another order. 

~

When Suiren got home later that evening, she went up to Akane's room. She helped Akane with her homework and they talked long into the night once more. Only this time, the conversation was focused on personal matters, matters of the heart. After Akane had fallen asleep, Suiren climbed out of her sleeping bag. She fumbled for her penlight in the darkness. Fearing she had made too much noise and woke Akane, Suiren froze. She heard Akane's steady breathing and sighed in relief. 

She made her way to her backpack and got out the journal Keimara had sent her along with the jewelry. She had been careless not to do this before. She opened the journal. She read the first page in the dim light, and noticed the writing in the book was not her handwriting. Suiren flipped ahead. The writing continued to be someone's attempt at forgery, but they had screwed up in another way. They had the events mixed up or missing. They had her birthday on August 23, but her birthday was in May, on the 13. Suiren smirked and pulled another leather-bound book from her backpack. This was her real journal. In hers, doodles and pencil sketches crowded the margins, while in the forgery, the margins were neat and empty. The forger had been careless. 

Putting aside the books, Suiren picked up the necklace. She was sure there was something planted on it. Suiren examined the pendant, searching along the sides carefully. There was a seam, very hard to make out in the dim light, but it was there. She checked the ring, and a similar seam was along it as well. 

Suiren yawned. She would take a closer look in the morning. Now, she just wanted to sleep. She put the items away and crawled back into her sleeping bag. The moment her head hit the pillow, she was asleep. 

Unfortunately, her sleep was plagued by nightmares.

~~Dream Sequence~~

A young girl, about three years old, was sitting on the floor, crying. She was wearing a water lily necklace. A door opened somewhere in the background. Chibi-Suiren looked up as the person approached her. 

"Don't cry, little girl." He pulled out a tissue and crouch next to the girl, wiping away her tears. The man had long blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, a single blood-red stripe running down it. He had rugged features, and the coldest white-blue eyes. The jagged scar running down his cheek resembled a lightning bolt. This was Keimara. Chibi-Suiren stared at the man wiping away her tears. She whimpered in fear, tears filling her eyes again. "It's alright. What happened to make you cry?"

"Some-some m-men kidnap-napped m-me. They l-left m-me al-alone." Chibi-Suiren began to hiccup.

"Now, why would anyone do that to a poor little girl? What's your name?"

Chibi-Suiren stuck her small chin out stubbornly. "My Daddy told me not to tell strangers my name. I shouldn't even be talking to you."

"And your daddy is a very smart man. You can trust me. I can help you get out of here and get you home. But I need to know your name to do that. Here, I'll tell you my name first. I'm Keimara." He smiled, revealing glistening white teeth. But hard as he try, his sincere smile had an evil edge to it, promising a future of pain and suffering. But Chibi-Suiren was naïve, knowing no different.

"I'm Suiren Saotome. My daddy's a great martial artist."

"Let's be friends, okay?" Chibi-Suiren was hesitant. "Then I can get you home to your mommy and daddy." The offer of getting her home was enough to make up her mind.

"Okay."

"Let's shake on it." Keimara stuck out his hand. Chibi-Suiren shook his outstretched hand…

~~

"NO!"

Akane was woke up to Suiren's cry. She switched on the light, blinking in the sudden brightness. She looked over at Suiren. The older girl was moaning and murmuring in her sleep. Akane could hear the rest of the household running to her room. Akane leapt out of bed, and gently shook Suiren. "Suiren, wake up! You're having a nightmare!" But Suiren didn't wake up. The dream continued in her head.

~~Dream Sequence~~

Chibi-Suiren is sitting alone in another room, this time she's a little older. A rectangle of yellow light falls across the floor as the door is opened. Keimara walks into the room. This time, his face is not friendly in any way, only cold and hard. He was angry. He walked over to Chibi-Suiren, who did her best to hide in the shadows. Keimara grabbed her wrist roughly, hauling her up from the floor so that her face was next to his. Her feet dangled above the floor.

"I'm through with this! Your father hasn't replied to the ransom letters yet! Are you sure that's your address?"

"Yes," Chibi-Suiren said, her face twisted in pain. "Yes. My mommy taught it to me when I was little." She gasped as Keimara tightened his grip on her wrist. Her small hand began to turn purple.

"Could they have moved? Answer me!"

"I-I don't know." Chibi-Suiren screamed in pain as Keimara tightened his grip once again. He was mad enough to snap her hand clean off.

"I should get rid of you now!" His other hand started for her throat, but stopped. "But if I do that, I'll never get the secrets of Yamasen-ken and Umisen-ken. You'll live for a while longer."

~~

Everyone else entered the room. Ranma hurried to his sister, wrapping her up in a hug. He stroked her hair and whispered in her ear. "It's okay Suiren, I'm here. Everything's okay." He kept murmuring this over and over, trying to comfort his sister. 

Suiren calmed down a bit. Then her eyes flew open. Visions from the dream flashed in front of her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut and she wrapped her arms around Ranma's neck and sobbed into his nightshirt.

'Geez, if she wasn't his sister… what am I THINKING? I should be helping to comfort her!' 

Suiren composed herself, and pulled away from Ranma. For the first time, she noticed everyone else watching her and Ranma. "Oh, I'm sorry I got all of you out of bed."

Nodoka rushed over to her daughter. "Are you alright dear?"

"Yes. It was just a nightmare."

Do you want to talk about it?"

"Uh, no. That's ok." 'Mom can't find out about Keimara!' "I don't remember much from the dream anyway." But that was such a lie, and Suiren knew it. She could see everything, every detail, hear every word spoken, from the dream. It was hard to forget. She'd had that same dream over and over almost every night for the past year. The reason, Suiren supposed, was that Keimara was soon to return to her life to warp and twist it once more. 

"You're sure you're okay?" Ranma was concerned, and it showed in his eyes. He was the only other person in the room that could have guessed what Suiren's dream was about, and that she was lying when she said she didn't remember it. 

"Yes, I'm fine. All of you can go back to bed now." Everyone filed out of the room. Akane sat back on her bed, and looked at Suiren.

"How bad was it?"

"It was horrible. You know what, I shouldn't be scared of this dream anymore. After all, I've had it almost every night for a year now. I should be used to it."

"Wow, my dreams were never that bad after my mother died."

"Akane, little do you know that your mother's passing was heaven to what I went through," murmured Suiren.

"What did you say?"

"I didn't think you'd hear me."

"I have very acute hearing. What did you go through that was so bad?"

Suddenly, Suiren could tell they were being watched. 'Keimara. I can't tell her now, if at all.' "I-I don't want to talk about it. Could you turn out the light? I'm getting tired." Akane switched off the light. "Thanks. Good night, Akane."

"Sweet dreams."

"I'll try." Suiren closed her eyes, but she couldn't shut out the visions from the dream. Those visions were so vivid, so real. But why wouldn't they? She had lived through everything. Suiren wasn't sure if she'd live through this encounter with Keimara, but she was sure as hell that she was going to pull her family through it. They weren't going to be hurt, at all, not if Suiren Saotome had something to say about it. Suiren fell into a deep, dreamless sleep with the thoughts of her future weighing heavy on her heart.

~

Keimara sat in the darkness of the abandoned warehouse. Suiren would return to him, he just needed the perfect bait. 'Let's hope the journal hit home.' He looked at the hand-held tracking device. A small flashing red light showed where Suiren kept the necklace. The speakers had been quiet, Suiren had either hidden the ring, or the household was sleeping. He smiled one of his cold, hard smiles. She couldn't escape him now. For eight years, eight fucking years, he had searched for her. After she had escaped from the island. Now, with the tracking device, she could run, but she couldn't hide. She didn't know that the jewelry was fake, so she would carry it with her wherever she went. And Keimara would follow. He smiled again, wider this time. He laughed, the vibrations ringing in the rafters of the rickety old building. The laughter stopped and his chest was racked with pain.

"NO!" Keimara was snapped out of his reverie by Suiren's scream. He heard the sounds of the household moving about. 

"Suiren! Wake up! You're having a nightmare!" Akane's voice drifted to his ears. Another nightmare. About him, of course. He had shaken up her life so dramatically, and he was proud of it. Keimara heard everything. He smiled as she refused to tell her mother about the dream, then how she refused to talk to Akane. 

His heart convulsed, forcing him to double over in pain. It was getting worse. He needed Suiren! 

~

Author's Notes: I have NO idea where that ending came from. I was planning on making this a happy story… oh well. I like this version better. This was supposed to be part of chapter four, same with the next chapter. Oh well. Next chapter, more action. I promise, really. Till next time, ja ne! 


	6. The Truth is Told

Disclaimer: I DON"T own Ranma and the rest of the gang, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi

Disclaimer: I DON"T own Ranma and the rest of the gang, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I DO own Suiren and Keimara, and whoever else I make up.

Author's Notes: Chapter six. I can't wait until I'm done this story, because I've got at least 10 more stories waiting in storage until I'm done this one! Not much to know about this chapter, just some more action, I hope! (I'm winging this chapter.)

~

Suiren's week continued almost uneventfully. She met Ukyo, and that meeting was nowhere near as dramatic as her meeting with Shampoo. Ranma had obviously told Ukyo about his sister at school. Suiren had a little trouble with that pain in the ass (as she put it) Happosai. He kept bugging her, and wouldn't ease up, no matter what Ranma said. He finally stopped when Suiren hit him with Dragon Rage. 

Suiren busied her day helping Kasumi and her mother with the household chores. She wore the ring and the necklace, even though she knew they were fakes. Keimara was smart, he would suspect something if there was no movement from her. She told no one about her dreams, which visited her more often now. Keimara's 'visit' would be soon, no doubt about it. Suiren would confront him, once and for all, and end this madness.

~

Keimara sat in the warehouse, alone with the silence. His chest hurt more often, and the pain was more intense than usual. He was going to meet up with Suiren once again, soon, and he would have his revenge. 

A soft jingle came from the shadows. Keimara looked, and saw his pet, a huge, all-white cat. Its green eyes glowed softly in the darkness, the red collar around its neck sporting a jingling bell. The cat began to purr. The rumble echoed all around the room, startling the watchmen outside. Keimara smiled.

"Come here, Kei." It seemed vain, yes, but he had named his cat after him. Only because the cat was ruthless and merciless, the same as him. Kei jumped onto his master's lap. Keimara stroked the huge feline. The cat purred louder and rubbed against Keimara. No matter how affectionate the cat seemed, Keimara knew, beneath the fuzzy exterior, was the heart of a fighter, who fought fair or foul. That's why Keimara loved the cat so much. Keimara smiled.

~

Suiren walked around the garden. She enjoyed the tranquility, the fragile beauty of the Tendo's garden. Each plant had been raised with extreme care, and in return, blossomed with an abundance of flowers. The fish swam lazily in the koi pond, not knowing or caring about what went on in the outside world. But Suiren's mind was far away from the beauty of the garden.

'Keimara's going to strike soon, but when, and how?' She trailed her fingers along the wall. 'What has that bastard got planned for me?' Suiren sighed and sat at the edge of the koi pond. 'Damn fish. They don't have a care in the world, while I'm stuck up here, reliving my childhood through my dreams and wondering about Keimara. I wish that I were a fish. Then I wouldn't have anything to worry about, except when I would be fed next.' Suiren sighed again. A larger fish attacked a smaller one, but then went back to swimming slowly around the pond. Suiren dabbled her fingers in the water, then flicked the droplets from her fingertips. 

Nodoka had been watching her daughter for quite some time. Suiren hadn't smiled since she had gone into the garden. She seemed to be concentrating on something. When She sat at the Koi pond, her thoughtful look turned to misery. Nodoka walked over the Suiren. "Is something wrong dear?"

'Oh, no! I'm trapped! What can I tell Mom? She can't know about Keimara or my dreams!' "Um, nothing's wrong Mom. I was just… thinking."

"But you looked so sad a moment ago."

"Well, um…I…uh…I was thinking about… a pet cat I had once. He was run over by a car."

"Oh, that's so sad, Hon."

"Yeah, I know. I miss him."

"What was his name?"

"Um, it was, uh, Kei."

"Hmm. Well, as long as nothing's wrong. I'm going to help Kasumi with dinner. Would you like to help as well?"

"No, that's alright. I don't think the three of us will be able to move about in the kitchen." Suiren smiled up at her mother. Nodoka smiled back. Nodoka nodded briefly, then turned and went into the house. Suiren looked back into the Koi pond. The fish were still swimming, never stopping. Just swimming in circles, dizzying, endless circles…

Suiren shook her head. If she watched the fish any longer, she would fall into the water. She stood up, brushing dirt from her shorts. She walked over to a tree, and traced her fingers over the rough bark. She stiffened. Someone was watching her!

~

The man in the tree watched Suiren as she walked around the garden, as she stared into the koi pond, as she talked with her mother. When Suiren moved to the tree he was in, he froze, not daring to breathe. He noticed as Suiren stiffened, detecting his eyes on her. He focused his chi, making it unnoticeable.

~

Suiren still had her hand on the tree. She could have sworn she could feel someone's chi. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her, mentally recording her every movement and word. But the chi was gone. Whoever was watching her was a strong martial artist, able to control his chi at will.

~

'Time to make my escape. Keimara will be awaiting my report.' The man left the tree, unnoticed by Suiren, or so he thought.  
~

Suiren felt the wind blow her hair. The feeling of someone watching her was gone. Then it clicked. That wasn't the wind. Keimara had someone watching her every movement! 'Shit. Keimara's smarter than I thought. This is proof that he's found me, and he's planning something. And he's going to put that plan into action soon. Very soon.

~

Back at the warehouse, the man spoke into the shadows. "Sir, I have a report on Suiren's movements." 

"Proceed."

"Sir, I believe she is starting to suspect something. Perhaps we shouldn't have sent the package so soon."

"I have my reasons for sending the package when we did. If she runs now, we'll be able to follow her with ease. Suiren's a smart girl. I knew she would figure it out sooner or later." A rumbling purr filled the large room. "Now go. We shall put the plan into action soon, for she is now expecting us."

"Yes, Sir." The man left the warehouse.

"Well, Kei? What do you think? Will Suiren open the door and greet us warmly, or shall we… make our own entrance?" The cat stopped purring and looked into his master's eyes, pure evil glinting in them. "My thoughts exactly." He stroked the cat's head, and Kei began to purr again. Keimara smiled, white teeth glinting in the darkness.

~ 

'This is not good. I need to find out what Keimara's got up his sleeve.' Suiren just kicked at the air harder.

Genma entered the dojo and saw his daughter practicing. "What's the matter, girl? You look thoughtful." Genma walked over to his daughter. Suiren wiped away a bead of sweat that was rolling down her cheek.

"Oh, nothing much, just practicing."

"I can see that, but you're thinking about something. You've been acting differently all week."

"Um… nothing's wrong, Dad. Not that I know of." Suiren forced a smile. From what Ranma had told her, her father would believe anything.

"Alright then. Do you want to practice against me?"

"Uh, sure Dad."

Genma took up a strange stance. 'What's he doing? I can't feel his chi… this must be Umisen-ken! I thought Ranma said Dad had sworn not to use it!' Genma moved quickly. Suiren barely had time to prepare for his attack. Genma's hands moved with blurring speed. 

"WHITE SNAKE VENOM RELIABLE FIST!" Genma was right behind Suiren. She moved by instinct, and lay flat on the floor. Genma lost his balance and almost fell on top of her, but she rolled away and hopped up onto her feet. Genma got up on his hands and knees. "Heh, no one's ever moved fast enough to dodge that attack. Your brother included. How did you do it?"

"Purely instinct. I've had to move faster on other occasions, but it's quite difficult for me to do so."

Genma stood up. "I don't know who trained you, but they did a good job of it. I don't know if I could have done it any better myself."

Kasumi popped her head into the dojo. "Dinner." Genma hurried out of the dojo. Suiren hung back.

'I can't stay here much longer.' She left the dojo and headed for the dining room.

~

Ranma and Suiren were sitting on the roof that evening, watching the sun go down. Ranma turned to look at his sister. "Suiren, um…who…I mean, how did you move so fast to dodge Dad's attack? It's almost impossible."

"Ranma, remember when I told you about Keimara? I never told you why he kidnapped me. He took me so that he could get Dad to give him the secrets to Umisen-ken and Yamasen-ken. But I escaped when I was eleven, and I only escaped but speed." Suiren looked at Ranma. "Ranma, you know what this means, don't you?" Ranma shook his head. "Keimara is coming back, soon, and he's going to take one of us. And the most likely person he's going to take is…"

"Mom," Ranma whispered. "The rest of us are strong martial artists. Mom's the easiest target. We have to protect her!"

"I know, but I don't know what Keimara has planned. I don't know to what lengths he'll go to to get those secrets! There's nothing we can do now, except keep an eye on Mom."

Ranma sat back on the roof shingles. "If only we could do something more…"

~

The man in the tree strained his ears to hear their conversation. He was rewarded with Suiren's voice telling Ranma more about Keimara. He smiled and left the tree once more. He ran to the warehouse.

"Sir, Suiren has told her brother more about you."

"Get everyone ready. The plan commences tonight!"

"Yes Sir." The man left to recruit the troops.

"At last, Kei, I shall have the perfect army of martial artists! Tokyo will crumble in my grasp, and then Japan shall fall! I shall be the strongest, the most feared man in all the world!" Keimara laughed, his laughter scaring the watchmen outside. Kei jumped onto the floor and ran to the shadows. Keimara stood and laughed. A staggering pain shot through his chest, halting his laughter and cutting off his air supply. Keimara crumpled to the ground in pain. The watchmen hurried inside, and carried Keimara to the cot in the back corner. The doctor was called in. 

~

That night, Suiren tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She stared ant the ceiling, she closed her eyes, pretending to sleep. When she was about to drift off, A loud sound from the next room startled her. 'No no no! Not now! Not so soon!' She ran out into the hallway. Throwing open the door, Suiren was greeted by a disaster. The room was trashed. Ranma was slumped in the corner, barely conscious. Genma was crumpled on the floor, unconscious. Nodoka was nowhere to be seen. The curtains fluttered in the faint night breeze coming in through the open window. The Tendos were running from their own rooms.

Suiren placed her head against the doorframe and closed her eyes. 'Shit. Why me?'

"What happ…" Soun's words were cut off as he looked into the room.

"I'll get Dr. Tofu!" Akane ran downstairs, pulling on her jacket and her shoes.

"Wait, Akane! You can't go alone!" Suiren ran downstairs, pulling on her own shoes. "I know who did this, and he's dangerous!"

"You know who did this?" Soun was in full demon-head mode. "Tell me!"

"Wait, I'll tell you when we get back!" Suiren and Akane ran outside, slamming the door shut. They ran to Dr. tofu's house and pounded on the door.

"Dr. Tofu! Dr. Tofu, wake up! We have an emergency!" A light switched on upstairs. Footsteps were heard coming down the stairs in a hurry. Dr. Tofu flung the door open.

"Akane! What's the matter?"

"Someone broke in and attacked Ranma and Mr. Saotome, and Mr. Saotome is unconscious!"

"I'll get my bag. Hold on."

"Please hurry!"

Dr. Tofu disappeared, and reappeared a moment later, carrying a medicine bag. "Let's go!" The three ran back to the Tendo household. Akane led the way to the patients, and Dr. Tofu checked them both over. He went downstairs to where everyone was waiting. "Ranma should be fine soon, only a few bumps and bruises, nothing really serious. Mr. Saotome should come around soon. I'll check him again then for any head injuries."

"Please, have a seat, Dr. Tofu. And thank you for coming so quickly at this time of night," Kasumi said. Dr. Tofu blushed.

"Suiren, you said you knew who did this?"

"Yes, I know who did it. And I know why he came tonight."

"Please, tell us everything, from the beginning." 

"Let's wait until Ranma and my father are here." They sat in silence. Dr. Tofu went upstairs to check on his patients. 

"Mr. Saotome's awake," he called from the top of the stairs. "Maybe you should come up here and talk." Everyone went upstairs to the trashed room.

"Suiren, do you know what happened? The man said he knew you." Suiren looked at her father sadly.

"Yes, Dad, I know that man. And I'm partly responsible for Mom being taken." Everyone else was shocked. They had failed to notice Nodoka's absence until Suiren mentioned it. They also couldn't believe that Suiren was responsible, if she was only partly to blame.

"What do you mean?" Ranma searched his sister's eyes. 

"I'll start at the beginning. That man was the man that arranged my kidnapping. He pretended to be nice, and I trusted him, not knowing any better in my young age. As I grew older, he became cruel towards me. He demanded that I give him my home address, so that he could send a ransom note. I gave him a fake address, and he grew angrier each day you didn't respond. He treated me harshly, let his soldiers treat me harshly, until I turned eleven and escaped on the boat they used to get to Hokkaido and drink. I ran and ran, then a woman found me, and she raised me. I demanded she teach me martial arts. I left when I was sixteen, to find you. I had thought Keimara ad given up on finding me, and getting the secrets to Umisen-ken and Yamasen-ken. But he found me, and sent me that package. He's been watching me all week, monitoring my movements and words. He was planning this strike for a long time. And he's finally done it."

"I still don't see how you are partly responsible for your mother's kidnapping."

"Don't you see? Because I left, Keimara had no other source to get the secrets. Because I found you, I gave him three more targets. And because I've trained so hard, and you two are martial artist, the only other person left for him was Mom. And there's something else." Suiren ran into Akane's room, and got her journal, the fake journal, the jewelry, and a rock climbing pick. She spread the items out in front of her father. Everyone else crowded around to see. "Keimara sent me a forgery of my journal, and the ring and the necklace. But there's something more about this jewelry." She grabbed the necklace and the pick.

"No, Suiren! That's the necklace your mother gave you!"

"No, it's not!" Suiren raised the pick, and brought it down on the seam of the necklace, spitting it open. A small tracking device fell out. "This was Keimara's copy, his way of tracking me." She smashed open the ring. "The same with the ring."

~

Keimara was listening to the speaker again. He heard rustling, and the pounding of feet and Suiren ran back to the other room. He heard every word spoken. He heard her smash open the necklace, and then the ring. 'This girl's smarter than I thought.' He smiled. He looked down at his feet, where Nodoka lay bound and gagged. 'She'll come to me. No doubt about it. We still have a score to settle.' Keimara rubbed a spot on his chest, wincing at the faint pain that shot through his chest.

~

Author's Notes: If I didn't stop now, this chapter would be 20 pages. It's already 11 pages long. OK, next chapter out REALLY soon, cause I'm on a roll here. I think that's pretty good for a winged chapter. What do you think? E-mail me at [horsecrazy217@hotmail.com][1] with comments or suggestions, or just review here (I'll read it over my e-mail anyway.) 

   [1]: mailto:horsecrazy217@hotmail.com



	7. Revenge

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma, or the rest of the gang, because Rumiko Takahashi owns them

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma, or the rest of the gang, because Rumiko Takahashi owns them. I do own Suiren and Keimara, so, yeah.

Author's Notes: This is chapter seven, and hopefully my computer won't delete it like it did last time! Anyway, I'm gonna finish this story soon, because school just let out, so I've got more time… but then there's my Neopets…

~

Nodoka stirred. She didn't know where she was, but she was aware of her bonds and the darkness surrounding her. She heard a low, throaty laugh. Something wasn't right. She struggled against her bonds, but all was in vain. The knots were tied too tightly. She heard the laugh again, but this time a voice followed it.

"So, you're awake. Good, we have…business to discuss." The laugh again. This time, the laugh stopped abruptly, and was followed by a moan of pain. 

'Where am I? Where's Ranma and Suiren?'  
~  
Ranma sat in the living room, nursing his bruises. Suiren was sitting on the roof, planning how to get their mother back. His father was upstairs, trying to rest a bit. The Tendos sat around the house, nervous and fidgety. No one could sleep, the thought of Keimara coming back was too…scary. Ranma pushed a stray strand of his hair out of his face, and stared at the ladder propped against the house. Finally, Suiren slowly climbed down the ladder. 

Her face was down, her shoulders slumped. When she looked up at Ranma, her expression was dark, her eyes hard. "Ranma, get Dad. What we have to do only evolves the three of us."

"But Suiren," protested Akane, "we want to help."

"You can help by not getting I the way. I know that sounds like a dumb cliché, but if you come, you'll only provide more hostages for Keimara. I know the way his mind woks, and it's not pretty." Suiren walked upstairs and into Ranma and Genma's room. She sat on the floor and stared at the floorboards. 

"Suiren, what are you planning to do?"

Suiren looked up at her father. "It's quite simple, really. All we have to do is…" Suiren stopped suddenly. She stared out the window, at the tree outside. Wordlessly, she stood and ran down the stairs and outside. She kicked the tree, and a man in black clothes fell from the branches. Before he could run away, Suiren had him by the shirt collar. She hoisted him up. He struggled, but Suiren only tightened her grip on his shirt. 

"I won't talk!"

"I'm sure you won't." Suiren dragged him inside and dragged him up the stairs, ignoring his cries and groans of pain. She threw him on the floor in front of her father and Ranma. "Keimara's spy. He claims he won't talk, but I'm sure we'll be able to make him say something." The man tried to escape, but Suiren knocked him to the floor by slamming her foot on his neck. "You sure you're not gonna talk?" Suiren applied more pressure to her foot, cutting off the man's air supply.

"I'll talk," he gasped, "just take your foot off my neck!" Suiren took her foot off his neck. He rubbed his neck, where soon he would have a nasty bruise. 

"Why does Keimara want my wife?"

"Suiren told you already. He only wants those techniques."

"Wrong, he wants revenge."

"Suiren…what do you mean?" asked Ranma.

"Let's go back in time. To ten years ago, when I first escaped from Keimara. He wasn't about to let me go without getting those secrets, so he hunted me down. Keimara was the one who found me in a dark alley. He approached me, anger blazing in his eyes. I tripped, and landed on the ground, hard. He walked faster, more intent on catching me." Suiren closed her eyes against the horrible memories from so long ago. "I felt around for a weapon, something, anything would do. I found a jagged piece of glass, and I hid it in my hand, until Keimara was almost upon me. Before he could grab me, I slammed the glass deep into his chest. As Keimara fell, I ran as fast as I could." She opened her eyes and looked at Ranma. "I told you I needed speed, and that was one of the first times." Suiren returned her focus to telling the story at hand. "But I ran blindly, and crashed into one of Keimara's men, and he took me back to the hideout."

"Yes, I remember that. You kicked and screamed the whole way. You even bit my hand. I still bear that scar, you know."

Suiren reached out and grabbed his long, blonde ponytail. She yanked his head backward. "So, you're the one who took me back!"

"Yes, why do you think I was assigned to spy on you?"

"Jackass! I didn't scream or kick! You knocked me out! I bit your hand when you first grabbed me!"

"Oh yeah…"

"Jackass." Suiren pushed him away. 

"Do you know why Keimara still wants revenge after all these years? He still has that glass piece in his chest! Our doctors were unable to remove it, in fear he wouldn't make it through the operation. And we couldn't take him to a hospital, because of his police record. That glass causes him great agony, and reminds him each day of what you did to him!"

"Oh, shut up! Keimara was only a powerful leader, because he scared the shit out of his army! That's the only reason you follow him, you're scared!"

"I…. That's a lie! Keimara is a powerful leader because….because…he…um…"

"Scares the shit out of you guys. You are nothing but pitiless puddles of quivering flesh! You obey his every command in order to spare your own worthless lives!" The man didn't respond. "Anyway, where is Keimara right now? He can't be far."  


"You're right. He's right here in Nerima. In an old warehouse. But that's all I'm telling you." With that, the man stood, and ran out the window, shattering the glass and sending jagged fragments over the three Saotomes. Suiren jumped up and ran to the window, but the man was not on the ground. He was nowhere to be seen. 

"Suiren, what's this with the glass?"

"Keimara is a stubborn mule, to say the least. When he goes out for revenge, he does everything in his power, and other people's power, to get what he wants. He's even willing to risk his life for it. I never thought he would take it this far." Suiren leaned her head against the window frame, and was silent. A single tear slid down her cheek. "I never should have come here, not until I had defeated him. I've just put my entire family I danger without even realizing it," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Suiren, there's nothing to be sorry about. We'll get Mom back, and beat Keimara, and we'll do it together, as a family. Right Pop?"

"Yes. We're sticking together, and we're going to pull through this."

"Alright, then. Here's my plan."  
~  
The man ran as fast as he could. He approached the warehouse, and had second thoughts about what he was going to say to Keimara. He would surely lose his life…no matter. Keimara needed to know. He slipped into the warehouse, and called out to the shadows. "Sir? I have a report." Kei's purr rumbled through the building, sending shivers down the man's spine. 

"Proceed."

"Sir, Suiren found me in the tree…and she forced me to talk."

"Did you tell her where we are?"

"I only told her you were in an old warehouse here in Nerima, nothing more." The man prepared for the outburst. But it didn't come.

Instead, Keimara said, "Very well. She'll find us faster, and we want that, don't we Kei?" The purr became louder, if that was possible. "Don't bother going back, there's nothing more to find out. Stay here, and assemble the troop. But only one. We don't want to scare her off, now, do we?"

"No, Sir." The man left to gather the army.   
~  
Suiren unfolded a map of Nerima. She had circled all the abandoned warehouses in Nerima. "This one is the closest one to the edge of the ward, and knowing Keimara, that's where he most likely is."

"But why that one?"

"So if the police come, he can make a fast getaway from here, and not be caught. It's all very simple, little brother."

"Well, sorry. I'm not the one who lived with a criminal for eight years."

"Yes, and in those eight years, I learned a lot about the way Keimara's twisted mind works. That's the vital component to this whole ordeal." Ranma just shrugged. "Alright, we'll move out in the morning, which isn't too long from now. We'll take the rooftops to the warehouse, but don't count on ambushing them. That spy that was here a little while ago has probably already reported to Keimara everything we discussed here. Keimara will have his army waiting for us. Now, every single one of them is a trained and ruthless martial artist, and they would have no regrets about snapping your neck clean off. It's what they do. Now, let's rest up as best we can. We need all the energy possible to pull this through." Suiren stood and left the room. Instead of going to Akane's room, she went back outside and to the roof. 'He's still holding that glass shard against me? I thought he had already hurt me enough as payment. But then, Keimara's as sharp as a needle, but he's as thick as a brick. He doesn't know pity when it's staring him in the face. Everything is revenge or conquest to him. He won't rest until one of us is dead.'  
~  
A few hours later, Suiren, Ranma, and Genma were racing from rooftop to rooftop to the warehouse. They had to be fast. About a block away from the warehouse, Suiren called a halt. 

"The atmosphere is different here…Keimara's waiting for us inside. But be careful for any traps. And Dad, no going Panda. We need your help." Genma nodded. "Good, let's go." They crept up on the building, and they heard the ominous purr. Ranma froze. "What's wrong?"

"Does he have a-a-a- c-c-cat-t-t?"

"Yes, one named Kei. Why?"

Ranma groaned. Genma spoke up. "The Cat-Fist will come in handy, no one can beat you once you've gone 'cat.'"

"Cat-Fist? Oh yeah. Still, be wary of Kei. He's a huge, white cat, and he's just as evil as Keimara, almost his feline counterpart. Trust me on that. And that cat can fight and defeat even the largest dogs. So be really careful." As they approached the door, Suiren noticed the guards were missing from their posts. Ranma noticed too. 

"Maybe he's not here. There are no guards out here."

"They're inside. Keimara's welcoming us into his trap." Suiren opened the heavy door, and the door swung slowly open on rusty hinges. The three stepped inside. Suiren's eyes adjusted quickly to the lack of light. She peered into the shadows, and saw twenty men standing in perfectly arranged lines. The men looked as if they were fresh from a photocopier. Each man wore tight black clothes, and had a long blonde ponytail. They each wore the same hard, expressionless face, but each and every man looked ready to fight at a moment's notice. Keimara's training methods hadn't changed one bit. Suiren smiled a bit. She addressed the men. "We don't want to deal with you. I have a score to settle with Keimara, and I plan on doing that without wasting time."

One man, the leader, stepped forward. "You have to get through us first." He took up a ready stance, and Suiren was just about to attack him when Keimara's voice called out.

"No, she doesn't. Well, Suiren. Long time no see."

"Yes, thank God."

"I'll ignore that. So, I see you've brought some friends. Oh, no, wait, I'm sorry…"

"Like hell you are! You're never sorry about anything!"

"I guess you're right. As I was saying, I see you've brought you're family along for the ride. Tell me, have you not figured out yet that I'll just hurt them, maybe even kill them, or are they just here for emotional support?"

"For the moment, they're just emotional support," she held up her hand to stop Ranma's protest, "but if you cheat, or if anyone of your men steps into our fight in anyway, they're here to kick you ass!"

"Ah, I see. Would you like to speak with your mother? She's been waiting for you to come."

"Shut up, Keimara. I'm here to fight you and settle our long-standing score!"

"Fine, if you win, I'll return your mother…"

"And if you win, you can have the secrets to Umisen-ken and Yamasen-ken."

"And can I kill you as well?"

"This is a fight to the death. You would have to kill me to win."

"Works for me. Men, fall back!" As his voice echoed through the building, the men cowered a bit, but the stepped back. Keimara stepped from the shadows. He hadn't changed a bit either. He was still tall, with rugged features and a long, blonde ponytail with a blood-red streak. He had less muscle than eight years before. The glass shard must have prevented him from practicing. All the better for Suiren. "You've named one rule, now let me name one. Anything goes. There are no illegal moves or attacks."

"There is nothing in this world that you find illegal Keimara. And one more thing. Your men can't interfere or step in in anyway, and that includes harming my family. Or else you forfeit."

"I'm not all for the forfeiting part, but…"

"Do you agree or not?"

"Yes, I agree."

"Then let's begin." The two took up ready stances. Keimara attacked first. He jumped into the air. "Guess what, Suiren. I've learned some new attacks since the last time we met!"

"So have I, Keimara, so have I." Keimara attempted to kick Suiren from the air, but Suiren read his moves and easily dodged his attack. "You're getting sloppy, Keimara! I could see that one coming!" 

"Could you, now? Well, how about this one!" He attacked for the ground this time. He released a number of punches at top speed. Suiren jumped up, and kicked out, striking Keimara in the back of the head. 

"Yup. Too easy. You need to practice more."

"If you hadn't shoved that goddamned piece of glass in me, I would be killing you right now!"

"Ha! Just you try! You know what, Keimara? I feel like ending this now!"

"How? You couldn't beat me in a million years!"

"I can, with my secret attack! The Dance of the Dragon!"

"Well, guess what. I don't want to end this! I'm gonna wear you down, then I'm gonna…" Keimara stopped in mid step. His eyes bulged as he clutched his chest.

Suiren seized the opportunity. "I'm ending this!" Suiren jumped backward. She checked that Ranma and her father were behind her and Keimara's men were in front of her. She didn't want her family caught in this deadly attack. Suiren planted her feet on the ground. She noticed the doctor pushing his way through the crowd. "Ah ah ah," she scolded, "no interfering!" She crossed her arms over her chest, and began forming white chi energy. Sweat rolled down her face as she concentrated. She was putting all her energy into this move. She squeezed her eyes shut and concentrated harder. 

Nodoka watched safely from the shadows as Suiren fought Keimara. She watched Suiren concentrate her chi. 'What's she doing?'

Keimara also watched in amazement. He had never seen anyone use a chi attack before, and Suiren was putting a great deal of effort into this one attack. If he could, he would attack her, kill her while she was distracted from the fight, but he couldn't move. He had expended too much energy on his earlier attacks, he had reached his limit.

Suiren opened her eyes, her attack now fully formed. "This is it, Keimara! May you burn in Hell! DANCE OF THE DRAGON!!!" Suiren jumped in the air and uncrossed her arms, releasing her attack. White chi energy spiraled out into a widening circle. White chi in the form of discs raced through the air. The chi engulfed Keimara and his army in a blinding flash of white light. Suiren landed on the ground with a thud. 

Ranma raced to her side, while Genma raced to free his wife. Ranma held Suiren in his arms. "Suiren, Suiren, you did it. You beat Keimara and his entire army!"

Suiren moaned softly and opened her eyes. "Finally. Ranma, do you know what attack that was?"

"No."

"That was the deadly Dance of the Dragon. Another hate technique. It's deadly to whoever comes I contact with the actual chi, and the one who releases the chi." Nodoka and Genma crouched at her side.

"No, Suiren, you can't die," sobbed Nodoka. 

"I'm sorry, Mom."

"What have you got to be sorry about?"

"I got the three of you in danger. I ruined you happiness. Ranma…promise me something."

"What, Suiren?"

"Marry the one you love. Not a girl you're forced to marry. Promise me this Ranma, please."

"I promise."

"I just want you to be happy. I love all of you." Suiren closed her eyes, her breath slowed, and finally, it stopped. Nodoka cried on Genma's shoulder. A tear slid down Ranma's cheek, and he bent over his sister's still form and sobbed.   
~  
The Tendos waited for the return of the Saotomes. Nabiki saw them first, and she called from her bedroom window. "They're here! They're here!" The four Tendos ran to greet the Saotomes. But only three of the Saotomes were standing. 

Ranma was carrying his sister's body, and Nodoka was still crying softly.

"What's wrong with Suiren?" asked Akane.

Ranma choked back a sob, and said, "She's dead." Akane looked at his tear stained face and knew he wasn't lying. The happy mood quickly shifted to sad.   
~  
Seven people stood in the Tendo garden, out by the koi pond. They stood in front of a rectangular patch of freshly dug dirt. Everyone was crying. Suiren had just been buried, with a very sad goodbye. Everyone turned to head back into the house, but Ranma stayed out by the grave. Akane stopped, and went back to Ranma. Tears were flowing freely down his cheeks. Akane had never seen him like this before. 

"I can't believe I just lost her. We had just met…"

"I miss her too. She was great to be with."

"She was, wasn't she. And she understood my curse. Why did she have to use that technique?"

"Just think, if she hadn't, she would most likely still have lost to Keimara, and we wouldn't be burying her in one piece."

"Yeah, I know." Ranma looked up at the sky. "She made me promise her something. And I'm going to do it, no matter what."

"What?"

"She made me make a promise, kind of like a dying wish. She made me promise to marry the one I loved. She just wants me to be happy." Ranma smiled a bit. "You know, she said she destroyed our happiness. What do you think?"

"I think she made our lives a little brighter, and she made our lives happier, if that's possible. She left a part of herself with each and everyone of us. She made a big impact on our lives. We're never going to be the same again."

"Yeah, you're right."  
~  
Author's Notes: **sobsob** It's so sad! (Yes, I'm crying!) I still can't believe I killed Suiren! Originally, I was going to make this a happy, sappy fic, but then Keimara popped up…and next thing you know, Suiren's dead! Oh well, I guess I like the fic better this way. Tell me what you think. Either review here, or e-mail me at [horsecrazy217@hotmail.com][1] I would love to hear from you! And one more thing, YES!!! THIS FIC IS DONE!!! Finally. **Whew** I thought I would never finish it! 

   [1]: mailto:horsecrazy217@hotmail.com



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